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Published September 2026

1 of 5Decay has gone through the enamel into the softer dentin
  1. Decay has gone through the enamel into the softer dentin
  2. Numbed. A high-speed drill removes every bit of decay
  3. The hole is etched and bonded so the filling sticks
  4. Tooth-colored composite goes in layers, each hardened with a blue light
  5. Shaped to your bite and polished

Who usually does it

general dentist. Done in every general office. Many plans pay the silver filling rate on back teeth.

One question worth asking

Would my plan treat this as an upgrade on a back tooth?

Reattaching a broken piece of tooth

FillingsBasicD2921

D2921. Bonds your own broken fragment back on rather than building a new filling.

A tooth-colored filling is a resin bonded into a cleaned-out cavity and shaped to match the tooth. Codes differ by whether the tooth is a front or back tooth and by how many surfaces the filling covers. The same group covers bonding a chipped-off piece of tooth back on.

The decay is cleaned out, the tooth is bonded, and the resin goes in as thin layers each hardened with a blue light, then it is shaped to the bite and polished. Front and back teeth have their own codes, and the number of surfaces changes the line again. Some plans treat a tooth-colored filling on a back tooth as an upgrade over the silver version and leave the difference to the patient. Most plans file this as Basic. What they actually pay varies by plan.

Codes for this

D2330BasicWhite filling, front tooth, one surfaceA small filling on one side of a front tooth.per surface · Done oftenD2331BasicWhite filling, front tooth, two surfacesCovers two sides of a front tooth.per surface · Done oftenD2332BasicWhite filling, front tooth, three surfacesCovers three sides of a front tooth.per surface · Done sometimesD2335BasicWhite filling, front tooth, four or more surfaces or the biting edgeA large front filling that rebuilds the biting edge.per surface · Done sometimesD2390BasicResin crown built directly on a front toothThe whole front tooth is rebuilt in filling material in one visit instead of a lab-made crown.per tooth · Rarely doneD2391UpgradeWhite filling, back tooth, one surfaceA small filling on a back tooth; plans often pay only the silver filling rate.per surface · Done oftenD2392UpgradeWhite filling, back tooth, two surfacesCovers two sides of a back tooth; plans often pay only the silver filling rate.per surface · Done oftenD2393UpgradeWhite filling, back tooth, three surfacesCovers three sides of a back tooth; plans often pay only the silver filling rate.per surface · Done oftenD2394UpgradeWhite filling, back tooth, four or more surfacesCovers most of a back tooth; plans often pay only the silver filling rate.per surface · Done sometimesD2921BasicReattaching a broken piece of toothBonds your own broken fragment back on rather than building a new filling.per tooth · Done sometimes

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Reattaching a broken piece of tooth (D2921): what happens, step by step | TruthMolar